Mahama must restore integrity to Presidency- Rawlings

According to him, the government machinery has been populated by some foul-mouthed “babies” who continue to “spill very horrible invectives” on others, which only give the party and the government a bad name and who must be whipped in line.

He made these comments at the Special Delegates' Congress of the NDC underway at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi to affirm the new president as the party's flag-bearer.

Jerry Rawlings accused government and state officials of being reluctant to act on the serial killing of women in villages despite attempts he made to bring it to their attention.

He said John Mahama must be congratulated not only for ascending to the office of president but more importantly for taking immediate steps to provide street lights to villages he (Rawlings) claimed had been living in fear following the serial killing of women there.

“First and foremost I would like to invite all of you here to join me to congratulate the new president,” he said to a rapturous applause from the delegates and crowd who thronged the Baba Yara Sports Stadium.

“The next time I mention his name I suggest that you wait for a follow up,” he was quick to add.

“The reason why I am asking you to join me to congratulate him is even major than even his emergence onto the throne.

“What he did was to respond to an urgent request I made to him to use his authority to help provide streets lights to a few villages where the state of killings [had been rampant.

“He very quickly ordered the national electricity people to go and plant the poles and get the place lit and to provide street lights to the villages where a spate of killings which have increased drastically over the last year and has increased with anticipated impunity."

"There is nothing more disheartening than poor villages being forced to stay indoors from 7:00 pm because of the threat of kidnap."

Mr Rawlings said today’s Congress marks the beginning of the fight for what will be a competitive election in December.

“President John Mahama, today is your first hurdle towards being an elected president. Electoral victory will depend on a number of things, such as how quickly you can restore integrity to the presidency.

“And not just the presidency but to his government and to the party,” he said.

But aide to the President, Nii Lantey Vanderpuye has disagreed with former president Rawlings.

He told Joy News' Evans Mensah, who is covering the event live, that the late John Mills’ presidency was built on integrity and which President Mahama is building on.

In his speech, President John Mahama described as “symbolic” the presence of the former President John Rawlings at the congress.

He said his “presence here is a mere first step on a long journey towards making the party what it is supposed to be.”